In the face of the increased technology, the stereotyping of a nerd is still in existence. The label of nerd is that of a computer savvy, white, male. This stereotyping has actually increased with the wave of new technology, possibly explaining the reason why women and minorities are not pursuing careers in information technology.
In the article “White and Nerdy: Computers, Race and the Nerd Stereotype (Kendall, 2011) , the author analyzes society icons such as the “Geek Squad”. This advertising scheme, used by Best Buy, offers the typical type casted nerd; short sleeved, white dress shirt, worn with a tie and pocket protectors equipped with pens, and thick rimmed glasses. Best Buy uses their “Geek Squad” for computer repair, service, and support. Best Buy says the uniform of the “Geek Squad” was derived from influence of special agents in federal law enforcement. The idea behind this “agent” look of the “Geek Squad” is to depict the image of “secret agent superheroes”, fighting to protect computer users everywhere. Also, Best Buy has tried to show a diverse “Geek Squad” population, showing black and white, and male and female members of the squad on their website and commercials. Although, even the minority members shown in their advertisements where the glasses, to further depict the nerd, or “agent” image. The company goes as far as to offer steps to members and website visitors to protect them from getting the nerd stereotype. No matter whom the uniformed “Geek Squad” member is, the dress still signifies a male nerd.
The article (Kendall, 2011) , also analyzes Weird Al Yankovic’s song and video, “White and Nerdy” released in 2006. This work is a parody of Chamillionaire’s song “Ridin’ Dirty”. It has been said that this song was “nerd revenge”. By March 2007, it was YouTube.com’s 19th most watched video. This song also was Yankovic’s first Billboard top 10 hit. Yankovic claims he has been a lifelong nerd, and was born to write this song. In the video and song, Yankovic, as expected, “connects nerd identity to whiteness”. The song has lyrics such as “fluent in Javascript and Klingon”, referring to computer language and the Star Trek movies. The video references several other popular culture artifacts that are linked to nerds; comic books, science fiction, action figures, and Star Trek. There are specific scenes in the video that are so off the wall that only people in certain social clubs would pick up on the reference, for example, the alley scene where he purchases a very difficult to find “Star Wars Holiday Special” video, as if it were a drug deal.
This article was written for a general audience. The author goes into detail where needed to explain the references in examples she has given. Although, at times, the article became a bit wordy, it was understandable, maybe due to the nature of the topic being so well known to the general population. It was written in a way that shed light on the topic in a way that was not so heavy on research. She gave examples that were easy to understand, while getting the point across. The flow of the paper was easy reading because she broke her examples down into categories, and discussed one at a time.
The key idea of this article was that society’s stereotype of the nerd, or geek, is that of a white male, sometimes socially challenged, armed with a pocket protector and glasses, and is a computer, electronics, and Star Trek guru. Movies, advertising gimmicks, songs, and websites feed into this stereotype, not necessarily in a mean way, but in a light hearted, poke fun of, kind of way. Being in the IT field, I do not consider myself any of the things that the stereotype is. And, being a woman, the IT field does not scare me.
References
Kendall, L. (2011). "White and nerdy":Computers, race and the nerd stereotype. Journal of Popular Culture , 44 (3), 505-524.
